The Forgotten Disabled Veterans of the Soviet Union

<p>Around half a million Soviet soldiers and officers lost limbs on the battlefields of World War II between 1941 and 1945. Upon returning to civilian life, they found themselves unable to work and felt useless. They spent their days wandering and begging for alms on the streets, in theatres, and markets to make ends meet.</p> <p><img alt="" src="https://miro.medium.com/v2/resize:fit:700/1*LR82VT8nyXAv4vCQQTQE2w.jpeg" style="height:890px; width:700px" /></p> <p>Joseph Stalin ordered that these war invalids be removed from circulation as they spoiled the urban landscape. From Leningrad, Moscow, and other major cities, crippled veterans were abducted, loaded onto trucks, and taken to the shores of Lake Ladoga, near the Finnish border, and from there by boat to the island of Valaam.</p> <p><a href="https://medium.com/@ppregazzi/the-forgotten-disabled-veterans-of-the-soviet-union-bd96040c10e6"><strong>Website</strong></a></p>